This bike will have you going faster than you realize so it is comforting to know that the twin floating 320 mm rotors, that are squeezed by four piston Brembo calipers, on the front easily slow the California Vintage down. Braided steel lines make braking effort consistent and firm while enabling the front brake to offer good feel and progressive power. 

Similarly, the linked rear brake has exceptional power, but has a firm initial grab that is difficult to modulate precisely from the large, adjustable pedal. Using the rear brake requires the rider to lift his foot off of the floorboard to find the brake pedal and the footrest for their heel; this was easier for some testers than others, but I found it awkward and it remained a maneuver I never quite mastered. 

As well as this bike handles its claimed 580 pounds in the twisties, it is sure to embarrass a few other well-known air-cooled push rod cruisers in that arena. However, cruising is the name of the game, and the Guzzi is loaded with character, curb appeal and comfort that makes stress free cruises to the local bike night a welcoming proposition. The rev happy engine that was at home in the mountains seems to have a split personality, and does not object to loping about as long as revs stay above 2,500 RPM’s or so. The tach and speedo were easy to read, and the usual warning and information lights were nicely displayed on the front console. There is no fuel gauge, but instead a low fuel light illuminates when there is 1-1.5 gallons of dino juice left.

It is also equipped with standard front spotlights easily operated by a sliding switch on the right switchgear. These offer plenty of light for night time ventures, and the hi-beam even has a handy ‘flash to pass’ rocker switch so you can warn those ahead that you’re coming. As an added modern touch, there is also a 12 volt accessory plug on the left side of the bike; a nice touch when GPS or cell phone batteries need refreshing on the road!

The rubber mounted floor boards keep all objectionable vibes away from the rider’s feet, and just a bit of vibration reaches the rider through the seat and bars; but it's never bothersome. The smallish mirrors are set wide, and offer a good view of what is behind you, which will be plenty as rolling on the throttle becomes somewhat addictive, and will surely have you leaving soccer moms, and civilization in your wake.

The suspension never got in the way of the rider’s enjoyment, and allowed for a bit of tinkering to fine tune it with easy to use compression and rebound knobs on top of the fork caps. The twin Sachs rear shocks are adjustable as well, as compression tweaks are a simple turn of a knob around the top of the shaft. Adjusting the rear pre-load however requires removal of the saddlebags and the use of a spanner to turn the ramp-style adjusting collar.

After just under 2,000 miles of use, there were a few noticeable quirks with our test bike. There was considerable drama in deploying the side stand on our test unit. It seems the retaining clip developed the habit of coming off of its springs as it was put down. It won’t ever accidentally deploy while riding, thankfully, but replacing the springs every time it was put down became tiresome. (Note: The side stand was like this when Dean picked the bike up. It looked like a retaining clip had either fallen off or had been "appropriated" for a repair to another bike - Ed)  Fortunately, it comes with a standard center stand that is easy to use, and left the frustration over the side stand as a distant memory. 

Also, the standard top opening hard bags had finicky locks that took some key wiggling to get to open. One lock broke entirely, and the other took to popping off as the bike was in motion. The front-hinged lids never went airborne, but the saddlebags could not be secured when it was time to park the bike.

On the highway the California Vintage’s 5th gear serves as a suitable overdrive, and the Guzzi sets a relaxed pace as it only turns 3,000 RPM’s at an indicated 70 mph and cruises 80+ smoothly. It is certainly no superbike, but has plenty of revs in reserve for any necessary passing, and as I discovered while running through Atlanta’s highways, enough power to stay out in front when needed. The standard windscreen gave my 5’8” frame plenty of protection with minimal buffeting, and made passing the miles enjoyable. The hard bags are deceptively large, and have enough room to accommodate most things you’ll need for that much-deserved weekend away or a trip into the office.